IDR Blog
Defence Budget 2017-18: Beyond the Numbers
With the presentation of the annual budget for the next fiscal being just a few days away, there is no point in second guessing the size of the defence appropriation. Even so, it would be pretty safe to rule out any extraordinary hike in the allocation. In last year’s medium term fiscal policy statement, the finance minister had mentioned...
Revisiting India-Myanmar Relations and the Way Forward
India-Myanmar relation is deeply rooted in history. India was one of the leading proponents of Burmese independence and established diplomatic relations immediately after Burma’s independence from Great Britain in 1948. For many years, Indo-Burmese relations were on a firm footing due to cultural links, flourishing commerce, mutuality of...
Japan and India in the New Asian Geopolitical Matrix 2017
Asia’s new geopolitical matrix in 2017 will be determined by the challenges that US President throws at China and the likely reset of US polices on Russia and it is in this churning Asian geopolitics that Japan and India will be called upon as Asia’s Emerged Powers to act in unison to meet the challenges so arising. The new Asian...
Children of a lesser god: A sad tale of West Pakistan refugees and others in J&K
I have often wondered as to why certain communities in Jammu region continue to remain in a state of despair and deprivation in an independent India. Why people belonging to a segment of the society are termed as “Indian citizens” but are deprived of all basic amenities of livelihood in the very state they reside in? Why in the era of...
Outer Space Treaty: 50 Years Later
Space has always been the final frontier for human knowledge and imagination. From conspiracies of alien life to the possible creation of sustainable habitats and colonies on Mars, the possibilities remain boundless. But from a geopolitical perspective, Space is increasingly becoming an essential modality of State Power and Sovereignty. From...